Vin Diesel

An overnight action-film sensation who intrigued audiences when he seemingly emerged from nowhere in the summer of 2001, Vin Diesel actually made his first mark on the movie business as a filmmaker. H...
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This week, Milla Jovovich's sci-fi horror series Resident Evil reaches a mark few film franchises have hit: the fivequel. Hollywood is routinely in the trilogy business, occasionally resurfacing older properties for a fourth film comeback event, but rarely pushing their luck with more. There was no question if 2010's Resident Evil: Afterlife would spawn another sequel — with added 3D prices, the fourth film became the highest grossing entry to date. Now the franchise's fifth film, Resident Evil: Retribution, steps up to the plate to serve up a mess of zombie monsters and Jovovich-approved action. The diehards can crave more of the same, but the question remains if the film can entertain the casual fan.
History proves that fivequels haven't been the most successful creative endeavors, especially in the world of horror (Friday the 13th: A New Beginning, Final Destination 5, Saw V, and A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child are passable late night entertainment, but a far cry from their originals). But it's not unprecedented either. Here are the fivequels Hollywood.com can safely recommend:
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Instead of sticking with the whimsical tone of the original, producers of the Harry Potter wisely invigorated the series with maturity and evolving aesthetics. Director David Yates grabbed the reigns of the blockbuster franchise after the action-packed one-off Goblet of Fire and took a hard right into dark, dreary territory. It was a fresh start for the series (helpful, when you're on movie number five), the beginning of the end that drove Mr. Potter to the thrilling conclusion.
Fast Five
Another instance of a series (Tokyo) drifting away from the mood and plot set up of its original incarnations to find a new, exhilarating angle. The only thing Fast Five has in common with its predecessors is the main cast (Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, and the rest of the gang) and its inherently dopey nature. Just to ensure that the fivequel's Ocean's 11-inspired plot was as ridiculous as possible, they even added The Rock to the mix. Brilliant.
You Only Live Twice
Early Bond movies were smaller-scale than what we're familiar with today, closer to thrillers than action movies. You Only Live Twice felt like a perfect blend of the two, taking 007 to Tokyo for a mission that's full of colorful locations, explosive set pieces, and classic gadgetry. As Bond continued to use this mold for future installments, the franchise became waterdown, too obsessed with over-the-top secret agent gimmicks. The fivequel was a sweet spot.
Superman Returns
Can we consider the 2006 Superman movie to be part of the original series? Bryan Singer sure did. Fitting cozily into 1978 Superman director Richard Donner's established mythology, Superman Returns attempted to recreate the majesty and thoughtfulness of that '70s big screen incarnation, opting for existential questioning and a few moments of superhuman strength over Man of Steel clobbering time. Audiences didn't love the approach, hoping Singer would bring Superman into the 21st century instead of nodding to the past, but unmet expectations play a bigger part in the negativity towards Superman Returns than the films actual quality. Give it a second chance!
Battle for the Planet of the Apes
The last hurrah for the original Planet of the Apes franchise and easily the series' lowest note, Battle for the Planet of the Apes is worth a watch just for the science fiction ambition on display. By this point, Apes have destroyed Earth with a nuke, traveled back in time from the first film's original setting, and then inspired a revolt in 1991 (where Apes were used as slaves). Battle continues building on the previous films, focusing on the war brewing between humans and primates and Caeser's (Roddy McDowell) quest to bring them together in peace. Somehow, producers also nabbed 10-time Oscar nominated actor John Huston for a key role. You won't find another fivequel with that kind of gravitas.
Muppet Treasure Island
After a string of original features, the Muppet gang decided to take a cue from the Disney animated oeuvre and adapt classic stories with their own wacky sensibilities. Muppet Christmas Carol is a true gem. Muppet Treasure Island less so, but it's hard to take too much issue when the Muppets are giving it their all alongside the likes of Tim Curry.
Alien Vs. Predator
If you think Resident Evil: Retribution is director Paul W.S. Anderson's first venture into fivequels, think again. The man behind RE, Mortal Kombat, and Event Horizon revived the Alien franchise by colliding it with Predator for a genre-lovers dream come true. Completely gone from Anderson's vision is the tension and slow-pacing of previous Alien films, but as a standard-issued action flick using well-known iconography, it's a winner. There are even people who think Prometheus is derivative of Alien vs. Predators — do you?
And fivequels seem to be all the rage in the near future: Twilight has Breaking Dawn — Part 2, Tom Clancy gets a fivequel with Jack Ryan, John McClane returns for A Good Day to Die Hard, Scary Movie 5 is now in production, and fifth installments of Pirates of the Caribbean, Mission: Impossible, and the Bourne series are all rumored. Five is the new three.
Follow Matt Patches on Twitter @misterpatches
[Photo Credit: Screen Gems, MGM Studios]
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Fasten your seat belts, friends of Amanda Bynes: The former teen star has had yet another wreck on the road. The 26-year-old actress has been involved in two more car accidents, the Los Angeles Police Department tells Hollywood.com. The most recent incident occurred this past Sunday.
"What happened on Sunday, she was rear-ended," Officer Rosario Herrera, spokesperson for the LAPD, tells us. "There were no injuries reported. So, there was exchange of information only." Herrera adds that the incident occurred in the "Valley area."
And just last week, Bynes found herself in another minor traffic collision "where she left the scene" before cops arrived, according to authorities. To date, Bynes has been arrested for a DUI and was allegedly involved in three other hit-and-run incidents. Should Bynes look to the Fast &amp; Furious franchise for a career revival? We doubt Dominic Torreto (Vin Diesel) and Brian O'Connor (sexy Paul Walker) would give Bynes a set of keys to one of their supped up cars.
Follow Lindsey on Twitter @LDiMat.
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John Travolta has been accused of assault by a cruise steward, who alleges the movie star exposed himself during a massage.
Fabian Zanzi has become the third masseur to file a sex suit against Travolta in as many months - two others who claimed the Pulp Fiction star acted inappropriately previously dismissed their cases.
In legal papers obtained by TMZ.com, Zanzi's attorneys claim he was working on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship in 2009, when Travolta was a passenger. The actor ordered food and asked Zanzi to deliver it to his stateroom.
The plaintiff alleges Travolta dropped his robe and exposed himself and then forcefully embraced the staffer during a neck message session.
Zanzi insists he resisted Travolta's advances and was offered $12,000 (£7,500) for his silence about the incident.
The masseur claims he complained about Travolta's behaviour but his superiors refused to allow him to file a full report, containing details of nudity or sexual contact.
Zanzi is suing for unspecified damages.
More: John Travolta &amp; Vin Diesel: Anatomy of a Hollywood Gay Rumor
Second Masseur Sues John Tavolta for Sexual Battery Masseur Sues John Travolta for Sexual Battery

Another day, another gay rumor for John Travolta. Why do some celebrities like the Pulp Fiction star, XXX star Vin Diesel and George Clooney continue to face gay rumors? And how do they address them?
News broke Thursday (June 21) that author Robert Randolph was suing Travolta for libel. The trouble started after the married star and his lawyer made statements about Randolph and his book You'll Never Spa in This Town Again, in which he claimed he had a gay affair with the star.
For decades, men have made wild accusations in tabloids like the National Enquirer, claiming they had sex with Travolta. Just this year, he faced allegations of sexual misconduct by three unnamed male masseurs. And he's always adamantly denied it all — and in many cases, he involved his lawyer Martin Singer.
After rumors reached a fever pitch, Vin Diesel finally spoke out in 2006, slamming rumors he is gay and remains defiant about keeping his personal life private.
Why don't we ever see him with women? Diesel says it's because he prefers to date in Europe, where he can go relatively unrecognized and thinks celebrities dating other famous people is a terrible idea.
But George Clooney has perhaps the best tactic of all. Clooney addressed gay rumors about himself earlier this year in The Advocate.
The Descendants star dismissed a strategy of vigorous denial that other celebrities turn to, saying, "Who does it hurt if someone thinks I’m gay? I’ll be long dead and there will still be people who say I was gay. I don’t give a sh*t."
More: Vin Diesel Reveals New 'Chronicles of Riddick 2' Pics Angelina and Brad's Engagement Lets Gay Americans Down Masseur Sues John Travolta for Sexual Battery
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Gay rumors have followed John Travolta for years but everything has certainly coming to a head, after multiple male masseuses have come forward in recent months claiming the actor sexually assaulted them.
Now, Travolta's trouble could be deepening. Before all of these recent accusations, Travolta was involved in a battle with author Robert Randolph, who claims he and Travolta had an affair in his book You'll Never Spa in This Town Again
Now, Randolph is seeking unspecified damages in an LA court for libel, claiming that Travolta and his lawyer spread lies about his mental state in 2010 to try and push people away from buying his then-unpublished book.
For his part, Travolta's lawyer calls the lawsuit "absurd" and promises to fight it aggressively. More: John Travolta &amp; Vin Diesel: Anatomy of a Hollywood Gay Rumor Second Masseur Sues John Tavolta for Sexual Battery Masseur Sues John Travolta for Sexual Battery

Everyone let out a big "Bazinga!" for the actor who plays supreme geek Sheldon Cooper on Big Bang Theory, the top-rated sitcom and out of this world syndicated hit. Today is the day that Jim Parsons finally put the rumor mill to rest and publicly acknowledged that he is gay and in a 10-year relationship. And he did it in the New York Times, so there is no taking it back.
The small moment is buried deep in a profile about Parsons and his return to Broadway in the play Harvey, which Jimmy Stewart made famous in a movie in the '50s. "Mr. Parsons is gay and in a 10-year relationship," the story states matter-of-factly. Many believed that he was already as out as Neil Patrick Harris, but that wasn't the case. A National Enquirer Story from 2010 openly discusses Parson's relationship to his partner, Todd Spiewak, but Parsons hasn't talked about his partner or his orientation in the media before and didn't give any quotes to the tabloid.
In 2010, during the acceptance speech for the first of his two Emmys, he said that he loved Todd, but in a long list of other people he loved including his mother and members of each gender. It wasn't the sort of on-stage confession that can really be used as a Wikipedia reference to point to his being a friend of Dorothy.
But now it's over and done with and we can stop the speculating and worrying. It's a testament to how little it matters in his career that this moment doesn't come with an "I'm Gay," splash headline on the cover of a tabloid, but rather squirreled away as nearly inconsequential beneath paragraphs and paragraphs of his other achievements. Still it's a big day for him to be so open and a great day for the gay community, that finally gets to count another fine actor among its ranks. Now, let's get back to talking about Broadway. There's nothing gay about that.
Follow Brian Moylan on Twitter @BrianJMoylan
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While leafing through paparazzi pictures looking for cute guys, which is just what I do on sunny pre-summer Fridays much like today, I came across some photos from the set up of the upcoming action flick Good Day to Die Hard. Yes, the name is really ugly, but damn who in the blessed bejesus is this guy walking around set in a tight take top giving us not just tickets to the gun show, but putting us on the guest list to an illegal black market arms emporium. Turns out his name is Jai Courtney. It also turns out I'm in love.
Now, the action star with the bulging chest and upper arms that look like a hedgehog crawling through a pair of panty hose, is a long tradition (see Hugh Jackman, Vin Diesel, Jason Statham, and everyone else with a Y chromosome and their name above the title) it was the surprise of seeing someone who I didn't know walking around like he's just waiting for his Men's Health cover. In the latest installment in the Die Hard franchise (and the first since 2007) Jai plays Jack McClane, the son of Bruce Willis' John McClane. Turns out that Jai was tapped for the role after an exhaustive search. The movie doesn't come out until February, but for a no-name like The Possibly-Not-Talented-But-Surely-Fine Mr. Courtney, this is as close to a big break as any actor gets these days.
The only reason we didn't recognize him from the picture is that he is currently sporting the shaved pate preferred Bruce Willis and other actors handy with a gun and a stunt double. If he had the golden ringlets from his last role, we would have recognized that torso anywhere. Jai, who hails from Australia (where they apparently do not know how to spell "Jay"), played Varro on the Starz! half-naked schlockfest Spartacus: Blood and Sand. Considering this is a show about men in leather diapers grimacing at each other, I watched every single episode (twice). Courtney played Varro, Spartacus' best friend who he had to kill in the arena. Sad.
However, today is not a day to mourn. No! It is a day to rejoice in this new drool factory we have discovered. Considering he's not only in a Die Hard movie but also in the next Tom Cruise picture, I have a feeling I'm going to be dreaming of those abs for a few years...or at least until Magic Mike comes out.
Follow Brian Moylan on Twitter @BrianJMoylan
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British actor Luke Evans has been offered the role of the supervillain in the sixth Fast &amp; The Furious film, according to online reports. The Raven star has reportedly replaced Jason Statham as the man who will go up against Paul Walker and Vin Diesel in the sequel, which will also feature Michelle Rodriguez, whose character was presumed dead in an earlier movie, and Dwayne Johnson.

The Fast and the Furious series has both churned out and roped in some of the most adrenal, action-oriented stars in Hollywood: Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Michelle Rodriguez, John Ireland. But topping the lot of them is the newest addition to the series: someone who isn't just adept at playing a badass action hero, someone who actually is a badass action hero: Gina Carano, former MMA fighter and star of Steven Soderbergh's Haywire. Carano is in talks to star in Fast &amp; Furious 6.
Brushing past the logical paradox that should have caused director Justin Lin to explode from overexposure to Tokyo drifts, this new film will reunite the director with series fixtures Diesel and Walker and Fast Five addition Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson. All three will be reviving their previous roles; there is no word as of yet on what sort of character Carano will play.
Is this a good career move for Carano? Despite its stellar cast and director, Haywire did not really find an audience. The Fast and the Furious movies have managed to maintain a pretty ample fan base since the series' inception in 2001, so this should be a good launching point for Carano's acting career. But does signing onto this sort of movie insure that she'll be glued strictly to the heavy action genre from here on out? And if so, is that even a bad thing?
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[THR]

Vin Diesel may be starring, producing, and handling most of the promotion for his Chronicles of Riddick sequel (still officially untitled, but generally referred to simply as Riddick), but he can't do everything on the film. The two images below, posted today on Diesel's Facebook page, showcase director David Twohy at work, helping his star shape what will undoubtedly be one of the more memorable performances of 2013:
Source: Comingsoon.net

Title

Breakthrough role as Riddick, a futuristic ex-con, in the sci-fi thriller "Pitch Black"

Featured in the ensemble drama, "Boiler Room"

Played a more lighthearted role in the comedy film, "The Pacifier"

Played a mercenary in Mathieu Kassovitz's "Babylon A.D."

Starred in Sidney Lumet's "Find Me Guilty," as a mobster who successfully defends himself in a two-year trial

Feature directorial debut, the Sundance screened "Strays"; also scripted, produced and starred

First earned notice directing the short film "Multi-Facial"; screened at the 1995 Cannes Festival

Starred as a DEA agent out to avenge his wife's murder in the action feature "A Man Apart"

Voiced the title character in the animated feature "The Iron Giant"

Featured in "Saving Private Ryan" as the ill-fated Lieutenant Caparzo

Reprised role in "The Chronicles of Riddick," the sequel to the surprise sci-fi hit "Pitch Black"

Reprised role of Riddick in "Pitch Black 2"

Made stage debut at age seven appearing in the children's play "Dinosaur Door" at Theater for the New City

Reprised role of Dominic Toretto in the fourth film "Fast and Furious"

Once again reprised role of Dominic Toretto for the fifth film, "Fast Five"

Starred in "Fast & Furious 6"

Featured in the sci-fi sequel "Riddick"

Played the lead in the action thriller "xXx"

Summary

An overnight action-film sensation who intrigued audiences when he seemingly emerged from nowhere in the summer of 2001, Vin Diesel actually made his first mark on the movie business as a filmmaker. His first two independent films screened at the Cannes and Sundance Film Festivals after which the hulking, clean-shaven actor had a breakthrough role as imposing antihero Riddick in the cult-favorite sci-fi film "Pitch Black" (2000). He was quickly snapped up by Hollywood and transformed into a movie star with high-octane hits "The Fast and the Furious" (2001) and "xXx" (2002). Diesel found further box-office success with the Disney comedy "The Pacifier" (2005) and went on to receive decent reviews for his dramatic performance in "Find Me Guilty" (2006), but audiences were generally reluctant to accept him in anything but sequels to his signature action films. The hype that surrounded the actor's rush to stardom eventually gave way to a period of career stagnation, but he bounced back in a big way with his prominent return for the 2009 sequel "Fast &amp; Furious" and its reliably popular later installments, including the super-sized "Fast &amp; Furious 6."